Chapter 1

I stare at myself in the mirror. My hands were cold and numb but I didn't even care about it. My mind wanders around. In my hands, there's a paper. A marriage contract. 

It has been 3 years since I got into an arranged marriage. I never saw my husband and did not know who is my husband. What I know is...he's a duke.

The ruler of one kingdom that is not really far from us. 

When my parents sold me off to a guy I didn't even know, from there I realized, my life would end. It is not shocking though. My life never has been better since I was born.

I was an unwanted child. 

The door opens. My stepmother standing there with scowls on her face. There's some maid with her holding a dress. I turn to face her. 

"Get ready. You are going to meet your husband and go home with him." she crossed her arms on her chest. "Finally. I get to get rid of you." 

I look down, "H--He's coming?" 

"Yeah. I don't expect it though. I thought he would abandon you. It will not be surprising if he did." she chuckles.

I could see the maids also holding their life. You are right mother. Even I am not surprised though. 

"Change her." my mother demands.

I stand in front of the mirror looking at my reflection. The maid brushed my hair with an annoyed expression on her face. 

"Ugh. Why your hair is so hard to brush?" she complained. 

"Don't you see that ugly curls? Of course, it's hard." the other maid jokes.

My hands just clench on my dress. It always happens when they come and help me change. They always complain about my hair. My white curly hair was so ugly in their eyes. 

Even mine.

As they finish their touch, there's nothing change on me. Just a simple dress that looks so faded. This must be one of the store dresses that Mother kept. 

"Are you done? We don't have time to wait, Maya." my stepmother sneers. 

She stomps towards me and grabs my wrist. She drags me out of my room. If anyone was in my place right now, they might scream in pain since my stepmother's grip was so tight. 

The door pushes open and she throws me in. 

"You wait here. Do not go out or even think about escaping," she warns me. 

"Yes, m--mother." I nod. 

She slams the door close leaving the room alone. I stand there not moving even an inch. I was born to follow people's orders. 

I heard chaos outside the window. Even though I'm not seeing what happened, I can already guess who's coming. 

This is it. People might ask, 'Why you don't run away?' 

I'm tired of running. 

I'm tired of living.

I'm tired of everything.

I want to die. That's all my wish. I'm tired. I just want to rest. 

My mind was interrupted when the door opened. My father closes the door slowly and walks toward me. 

"My dear Maya, you look beautiful." he gives me a sinister smile.

Yeah, beautiful. I don't even believe any good words that coming from you. His hands touched my cheek, caressing it. It causes me to flinch. 

His expression changed to a scowl. "Why did you flinch from my touch, huh?" he grabs my jaw. 

"I--I'm sorry, father." I stutters. 

"I told you before not to flinch, am I right!?" he scolds me. 

"Y--Yes..."

The grip on my jaw becomes tight which makes me believe it will leave red marks. 

"Make sure you don't flinch when we're in front of your husband, understood!?" he said through his gritted teeth.

I nod. He let go of my jaw harshly. Tears almost dripped from my eyes but I quickly wiped them out. 

Suddenly, the door open. I lifted my head and saw a guy standing there full of blood.